Peacock taken in our backyard with a Nikon D40 near Glen Rose
And God said,"Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds; livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so. God made the wild animals, according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. Genesis 1:24-25
TEXAS LONGHORNS
Longhorn cattle originated centuries ago in Africa. From there, they traveled with the Moors to Spain and then with Columbus to the New World in 1493. Taken by Gregorio de Villalobos to Mexico in 1521, the breed eventually worked its way up to Texas and the southwest with explorers, settlers and expeditions to establish missions. These cattle propagated as they escaped, were scattered by Indians or abandoned when missions failed.
Neglected by man and left to drift on their own, the cattle developed the survival instincts that only nature can create. They developed horns for protection, allowing the dominant males to propagate the breed, and strengthened their feet and legs by walking many miles for water, food and procreation. Only the strong survived. These were the ones which developed resistance to disease, learned to forage on whatever nature provided, and still thrive.
Left on their own, the sturdy Texas Longhorn multiplied. Earlt settlers in the Southwest began to gather these cattle and send them to northern markets. A trickle of the flood that was to follow began in 1846 when the first documented drive to Missouri occured. These cattle were held in Ohio that winter and sent to eastern markets in 1847.
During the 1850's, sporadic drives of probably less than 1000 cattle each were moved north. These drives were handled by small groups of men. A herd of 500 head might have three men and another might have eight men.
Then came the Civil War. With the northern markets closed, the trail drives were turned to the east and Texas beef began to supply the Confederacy.
By 1860, the census recorded 4,000,000 head of cattle and only 600,000 people in Texas. The number of inhabitants diminished as men went to join the war, but the Texas Longhorn, left on its own again, continued to multiply. When the soldiers returned home after the Civil War, they found the only thing of value left were the vast herds of longhorned cattle running loose.
Industrious men began once again to gather the cattle and move them north where the demand for beef had driven the price of sirloin steak in New York to the exorbitant price of 25 cents to 35 cents a pound. In 1866, some 260,000 head were moved up the trail to Kansas and Missouri, but less than half reached their destination. The herds were driven by cowboys, many of whom were in their teens. They faced constant hazards from storms, floods, Indians and those who would steal their herds.
The trickle that had begun in 1846 became a flood and some 10,000,000 were sent over the northern trails before they were closed. More than 700,000 Texas Longhorns were driven north in 1871, the year of maximum effort.
The Texas Longhorn, which actually could gain weight on the trail, was responsible for the economic recovery of Texas. The net profits of $8 to $20 per head, when returned to Texas, enabled the owner to invest in vast tracts of land, often at 50 cents per acre. Thus, one Texas Longhorn was worth 15 to 40 acres of land. Thus began the great ranches of the Southwest.
Whitetail buck with Lake Whitney in the background. Photo taken on Labor Day weekend 2006 by Gene Merrill using a Kodak Z700.
Texas Birds:
Most Colorful. The Painted Bunting (Passerina Ciris). This little finch is gaudily colored with a blue-violet head, a green back and bright red rump and under parts.
Noisiest. The Chachalaca(Ortalis Vetula) is probably Texas' noisiest bird with it's raucous chicken-like cackle. This obscure bird is found in south Texas.
Smallest. The Calliope Hummingbird (Stellula Calliope) which occasionally is sighted in El Paso, is the smallest bird recorded in Texas--a maximum of 3 inches in length.
Tallest. The Whooping Crane(Grus Americana) is North America's tallest bird tipping 5 feet with a wingspan of 7 1/2 feet.
Widest wing span. The White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) has a wing span of 9 feet. Pelicans reside along the Gulf and breed only at Laguna Madre.
Reptiles:
The largest native reptile in Texas is the alligator(Alligator mississippiensis). Normally 6 to 6 1/2 feet long, the largest of this species ever recorded was 19 feet 2 inches. In 1874, a 12 foot alligator was caught and killed on the Trinity River north of the courthouse bluff in Fort Worth. On July 17, 1978 at Missouri City(Houston suburb) a 14 foot alligator settled down in the middle of the street to sun himself. After snapping at a few onlookers, he was lassoed and hauled 15 miles away to the river.
Herd bull with his harem north of Fort Worth, Texas. Nikon Coolpix L1.
We're proud to display for your enjoyment this extraordinary series of photographs taken by our friend Gene Merrill.using a Finepix S9100. Gene captured these images at Lake Weatherford. From left, a cottonwood bore, indian paint brush with spider on a petal and a dragonfly. Thank you Gene.
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Only in
Texas
Cedar Park, Texas
Olympus C-720 UZ by M. Caro
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Car Alarm Olympus C-720 UZ
Cedar Park
by Mickey Caro
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Tender MomentOlympus E-1 by Mickey Caro
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StoicOlympus E-300 by Mickey Caro
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Texas
ElkOlympus E-10 by Mickey Caro
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Baby and mamma zebra at Exotic Zoo Resort in
Johnson City
,
Texas |
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Birds on a wire t aken on HWY 281 in Johnson City December 2, 2006 by Sara Shaheen
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Dottie, Resident elk at Exotic Zoo Resort in Johnson City , Texas Taken: December 4, 2006 by Richard Shaheen
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Kangaroo at Exotic Zoo Resort in Johnson City , Texas Taken: December 4, 2006 by Sara Shaheen |
Two rattlesnakes caught during their mating ritual in far west Texas.
If anyone knows who the photographer is, please contact us so we can give proper atribution.
For All Occasion Note Cards
go to Prints Etc.
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High Plains Drifters Taken in Leander, Texas With an Olympus E-1 by Mickey. |
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Jo Cox Box114 Newcastle Texas 76372 Young County Texas. Kodak Easy Share Camera.
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Jo Cox Box114 Newcastle Texas 76372 Young County Texas. Kodak Easy Share Camera
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Sympetrum vicinum
Camera: Olympus C700 UZ
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Butterfly on Indian Blanket. Taken in
San Antonio
. By Karen Moen with a
Nikon D200
.
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Butterfly on Indian Blanket. Taken in
San Antonio
by Karen Moen with a Konica-Minolta
DiMage Z20
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Karen Moen is a Photographic Artist. The images above are ample evidence of that fact.
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White Pelican
By: Irma Gomez
Camera SONY Cyber Shot
Taken -
February 2008
Location - Falcon Lake
Zapata, Texas
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This lovely female built her web in our backyard.
Argiope aurantia
. Taken during
August 2007
after all the rain in
San Antonio
by Karen Moen using a
Nikon D200
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Photo of crane wading in Possum Kingdom lake by Gene Merrill using a Fuji S9100.
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Taken
November 27
, 2008 with a Konica-Minolta
DiMage Z20
by Karen Moen.
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White-winged doves with no
table manners
! Taken in
San Antonio
by Karen Moen
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The harmless Mexican
Milksnake
has a similar pattern but the red and yellow touching means the venomous coral snake. Taken three feet from our back door with a Konica-Minolta DiMage..Karen Moen
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Location: Glen Rose, Texas |
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Camera: Nikon D40 |
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Michael Lewellen |
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"Other states were carved or born, Texas grew from hide and horn." --Texas Author Berta Hart Nance |
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Peacock taken in our backyard with a Nikon D40 near Glen Rose |
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Michael Lewellen |
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Crab spider
hunting on a sunflower in
Bastrop, Texas
. Taken on June 21, 2009 by Karen Moen using a Konica-Minolta
DiMage Z6
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Karen Moen with Konica-Minolta
DiMage Z6
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